The Basics of Tenancy-in-Common Ownership Arrangements

Many of our clients are real estate owners and so in this installment of HTW we thought it beneficial to introduce the concept of tenancy-in-common ownership arrangements. A tenancy-in-common (TIC) is a form of joint ownership which involves multiple owners who share an undivided fractional interest in a single piece of real estate. This means that each owner possesses rights which are essentially identical to those of single owners rather than co-owners of typical partnerships. Being a co-owner in a tenancy-in-common arrangement confers numerous benefits; let’s discuss some of the basic characteristics of TICs and highlight a few of the distinguishing features of this type of arrangement.

Distinguishing Features

As mentioned, co-owners to a TIC possess undivided fractional interests in the underlying property. In practice, this means that they are not barred from freely transferring or alienating their interest in the TIC. At any time, a TIC co-owner can distribute their interest to another person without having to receive prior consent from the other co-owners. This distinguishes a TIC from other joint ownership arrangements, such as a tenancy-by-the-entirety.

Another distinguishing feature of TICs is the ability to have interests divided unequally among co-owners. Theoretically, in a TIC, one co-owner may possess a larger interest than other co-owners. In a scenario involving three co-owners, for instance, one co-owner may possess a fifty percent ownership and the two remaining co-owners may each possess an interest of twenty-five percent. This type of unequal division of ownership is either disallowed or typically not seen in alternative arrangements.

In a TIC, co-owners all share in the profits of the real estate and are all affected by changes in property value. Each co-owner receives a separate deed and insurance title to his or her interest in the real estate.

Another important feature of TICs is the ability of TIC co-owners to use their interest as part of a section 1031 exchange. As we’ve discussed several times, section 1031 allows capital gains tax to be deferred in the event that the proceeds from the sale of real property are reinvested in other real property of like-kind. Typically, section 1031 may not be invoked by traditional partnerships, but TICs are an important example of a jointly owned piece of real estate which may partake in a 1031 transaction.

In the near future, following a few more articles on the sixteenth amendment, we will discuss TICs in greater detail by exploring some legal cases involving TICs and section 1031 of the IRC.

About johnSeattle CPA+John Huddleston has written extensively on tax related subjects of interest to small business owners. He is a graduate of Washington State University and the University of Washington School of Law.